The basic goal of a portrait is to capture the likeness of the subject. But a portrait can offer a lot more information than simply the shape of a face.

Rob Williams first used the Library’s digital newspaper collections more than a decade ago as a high-school teacher of U.S. history in Powhatan County, Virginia, near Richmond. Today, he’s a recording artist—he released his third album, “An Hour Before Daylight,” in October. But he still draws inspiration from the same online resources that captivated his history students.

Two articles about Patrick Gilmore’s June 1869 peace jubilee in Boston, an event many students and teachers may not be familiar with, might pique students’ interest in learning about the event and lend themselves to structured evaluation and analysis of each source of information

According to an article in the August 28, 1912, edition of The Presbyterian of the South, “The attempts at regulation [of alcohol] failed and the civilization of Babylon was snuffed out in an orgy of drink.” An article like this presents an opportunity to teach students how to read content critically and to place it in historical context.